CAIRO: Egypt opened its first international weapons fair on Monday, an event that organizers hope will project a message to the world that the country is secure and stable.
The three-day Egypt Defence Expo features the world's top arms companies and hundreds of military and civilian participants from dozens of countries.
The United States, Egypt's largest arms supplier, had over 40 companies present, alongside major firms from Britain, France and Germany, as well as Russia, China, India and Gulf monarchies.
"We are seeing a shift in paradigm away from some of the heavy machinery that characterize our assistance in past years toward a more nimble kind of approach to countering terrorism," US Embassy Deputy Chief of Mission Dorothy Shea said.
"We are trying to share our hard-won lessons from the battlefield and help our Egyptian colleagues take advantage of that and make sure that their acquisitions of equipment are appropriate and really benefit them to the maximum."
Organizers have not specified sales targets or expectations, but say agreements will be signed and announced at the fair, held in a massive expo center where marching bands and thousands of pieces of military equipment were on display.
Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi, who opened the event, led the 2013 military overthrow of an elected but divisive Islamist president. Egypt is currently battling a Daesh-led insurgency in the Sinai Peninsula, and many of its vehicles and hardware on display have been battle tested there.
"Defense and armament are a pillar of peace," Defense Minister Gen. Mohammed Zaki said in opening remarks. "Peace must be protected by power that secures."
An upbeat video shown to participants at the opening ceremony highlighted the army's leading role in Egyptian society, blending scenes of Red Sea tourism and pharaonic temples with troops and equipment on the move. Zaki said the military only acquires power to protect and guarantee the country's safety and unity.

At least 30 migrants believed missing after boat sinking off Libya

According to a survivor the boat was carrying almost 50 migrants

Libya's western coast is a main departure point for migrants trying to reach Europe

Updated 4 min 19 sec ago

Reuters

March 21, 2019 18:45

0

TRIPOLI: At least 30 migrants are believed to be missing after their boat sank off the western Libyan city of Sabratha this week, a coastguard spokesman said on Thursday.
According to a survivor the boat was carrying almost 50 migrants, coastguard spokesman Ayoub Qassem said. The body of one child was recovered and 16 migrants were rescued, he added.
Previously, officials had said at least 10 migrants were thought to have died in the incident.
Libya's western coast is a main departure point for migrants trying to reach Europe, though numbers have dropped since an Italian-led effort to disrupt smuggling networks and support Libya's coast guard.